The Port Askaig range of whiskies is a well known indie range bottled by Elixir distillers a sister company of TWE. They have a regular range consisting of one NAS (100 proof) and age statement Islay malts originating from a few distilleries, which remain unknown.. (sort of at least).
This Port Askaig 28 Year Old Islay single malt has been bottled from a specially selected batch of casks from an undisclosed Islay distillery. Without detailed information on the provenance of the whisky, Elixir distillers have selected the casks based on the quality of the whisky.
This is a limited edition of 3,000 bottles at 45.8%
Port Askaig 28 y0 , 45.8% , £295
Nose: Quite medicinal , and very lively for a 28 year old Islay, the peat is out there and it’s quite strong as well. It’s peppery, and pine-y with quite some pine needle resin and menthol along bandages and fishnets, also some dental clinic notes. Some vanilla and sweet notes develop with time, and a hint of papaya, but not quite tropical.
Palate: Ginger powder, mocha and black tea, some cured meat, ashy and dry, with bitter wood, coconut shreds, Brasil nuts, pepper and some grassy notes as well. The Papaya is gone, and there are no exotic fruit notes i was hoping for, a hint of tar maybe – pure Islay.
Finish: Ash, smoke, mint and salt with a hint of pepper.
Conclusion: This is a very good example of well-aged Islay malt. However, I was expecting a bit more from such a well aged malt (exotic fruit, more wood). Maybe my expectations were too high. I certainly liked other PA’s better in the past.